The house selling process, step by step

Selling a home in England or Wales follows the same basic path whichever way you sell: get your finances and paperwork ready, find a buyer, let the solicitors do the conveyancing (the legal work of transferring ownership), then exchange contracts and complete. GOV.UK says the whole process takes about 5 months on average, and the sale isn't legally binding until contracts are exchanged.

This guide sets out every step in order, who does what, and where sales tend to get stuck. It's general information for England and Wales. The rules are different in Scotland.

The house selling process at a glance

Step	What happens	Who does it
1. Check your finances	Find out what you owe and any early repayment charge	You and your lender
2. Value the home	Look at sold prices and get valuations	You and estate agents
3. Choose how to sell	Estate agent, auction, cash buyer or a private sale	You
4. Instruct a solicitor	ID checks, title checks and forms, started early	You and your conveyancer
5. Get the EPC and paperwork	Order the EPC before marketing, gather certificates	You or your agent
6. Market the home	Listing, photos and viewings	Your agent, or you
7. Accept an offer	Check the buyer's position and agree a price	You, with your agent
8. Conveyancing	Contract pack, searches, survey, enquiries	Both solicitors, with your help
9. Exchange contracts	The sale becomes binding and the deposit is paid	Both solicitors
10. Completion	The money moves and you hand over the keys	Both solicitors and you

Step 1: Check your mortgage and costs

If you have a mortgage, ask your lender how much you owe, whether there's an early repayment charge, and what it would cost to move the mortgage to a new home. GOV.UK suggests starting here because it tells you the lowest price that works for you.

Then budget for the other costs: estate agent fees, conveyancing, the EPC, removals and, if the home hasn't always been your main home, Capital Gains Tax. Our house sale proceeds calculator adds these up, and the cost of selling a house explains each one.

Step 2: Find out what your home is worth

Check what similar homes nearby have sold for using HM Land Registry's sold price data, then get valuations. GOV.UK's guide to selling suggests asking three estate agents. Agent valuations are free but informal; a valuation from a qualified surveyor costs money. A valuation isn't a promise of a sale price, and asking well above it can mean a long wait for offers. See how to get a house valuation.

Step 3: Decide how to sell

• Estate agent. Usually gets the highest price for a home in decent condition, if you can wait. Read the contract for the tie-in period and for "sole selling rights", which can mean paying commission even if you find the buyer yourself. Estate agents must belong to a redress scheme (The Property Ombudsman or the Property Redress Scheme).
• Auction. Can suit unusual or run-down homes, but the price isn't certain and there are fees. See selling a house at auction.
• Cash buying company. Quicker and more certain, but cash buyers, including us, usually pay below market value. GOV.UK's selling guide warns that some "instant cash buyers" pay well below the market price and suggests choosing a member of the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB). You can also check whether a buyer belongs to The Property Ombudsman.
• Selling privately. You save on agent fees but handle the pricing, viewings and negotiating yourself.

If your home is in good condition and you're not in a hurry, an estate agent will usually leave you with more money. A quick cash sale tends to suit people who need speed or certainty, or whose home would be hard to sell on the open market. Cash buyer vs estate agent vs auction compares the routes in detail.

Step 4: Instruct a solicitor or conveyancer early

GOV.UK advises choosing your solicitor or licensed conveyancer shortly before you put your home on the market, or as soon as possible afterwards, because it cuts delays later. Get more than one quote, check they're regulated, and ask what the fee includes.

They're legally required to check who you are and that the property is yours to sell, so expect to provide photo ID and proof of address dated within the last three months. They can then check your title early, so problems are sorted before a buyer is waiting, and send you the property forms to fill in.

Step 5: Get your EPC and paperwork ready

You must order an Energy Performance Certificate before you market your home, unless you already have one that's still valid (they last 10 years). You can look for an existing one free on GOV.UK's find an energy certificate service.

Start gathering what buyers will ask for: planning permissions and building regulations certificates for any work, warranties, electrical and gas safety records, boiler service records, any party wall agreements and, for a flat, the lease and fire safety information. Documents needed to sell a house has a full checklist.

Tell your agent about anything a buyer would need to know, and don't cover up defects. Estate agents have a legal duty under consumer protection law not to leave out information buyers need, and the government said in June 2026 that it will publish new guidance for agents on this. See material information when selling.

Step 6: Market your home and hold viewings

Your agent writes the listing, takes photos and books viewings. The EPC rating must appear in adverts, and buyers must be offered the EPC free of charge. GOV.UK suggests keeping the home clean and tidy, giving access to the loft, garden and garage, and asking the agent for feedback after each viewing. If offers don't come, look again at the price, the photos and the agent. See house not selling.

Step 7: Accept an offer

Estate agents must tell you about every offer. Before you accept, look beyond the price: is the buyer paying cash or using a mortgage, do they have a mortgage agreed in principle, and do they need to sell a home first? A long chain means more sales that all have to go right.

Once you accept, GOV.UK suggests taking your home off the market and checking within a few days that the buyer has instructed a solicitor. An accepted offer still isn't binding. The government's October 2025 consultation said around 1 in 3 transactions fail, citing research done for it in 2023. How to accept an offer on a house explains what to check.

Step 8: Conveyancing

This is usually the longest stage. Research cited by the government in October 2025 found it takes an average of 120 days to complete once an offer is accepted. In order, roughly:

1. The contract pack. Your solicitor drafts the contract and sends it to the buyer's solicitor with your title documents and your answers on the TA6 property information form and the TA10 fittings and contents form. For a leasehold flat there's also the TA7 form and information from the freeholder or managing agent, who may charge for it.
2. The buyer's checks. The buyer's solicitor orders searches, including local authority searches, and checks your title. The buyer arranges a survey and, if needed, a mortgage.
3. Enquiries. The buyer's solicitor sends written questions. Your solicitor answers most of them, asking you where needed. Answering quickly and accurately is one of the most useful things you can do.

If the survey finds problems, the buyer may ask to renegotiate. You don't have to agree. Conveyancing timeline for sellers goes through each stage in more detail.

Step 9: Exchange contracts

When both sides are ready, you sign the contract and agree a completion date, and the solicitors exchange contracts. From that moment the sale is legally binding. The buyer pays a deposit, which the Council for Licensed Conveyancers says is typically 10% of the price. If the buyer then pulls out, they may lose the deposit; if you pull out, you could be sued. You'll usually also sign the transfer deed (form TR1), which is dated on completion day. See exchange and completion.

Step 10: Completion

On completion day the buyer's solicitor sends the money to yours. GOV.UK says this often happens around lunchtime, so plan to be packed and out by then. Your solicitor pays off your mortgage and any other secured loans, the estate agent and their own fee, then sends you the rest. You hand over the keys, usually through the agent, and leave the home in the state agreed in the contract, with everything you agreed to leave. See what happens on completion day.

After the sale

• Tell the council, utility companies, your insurer, your bank and anyone else who writes to you.
• Usually there's no Capital Gains Tax on a home that's been your main home the whole time you owned it (Private Residence Relief). If tax is due, for example on a second home or a rental, it must be reported and paid within 60 days of completion.
• Keep a record of the sale price and your selling costs, which you'll need if Capital Gains Tax applies.

If you're selling for someone else

Extra steps apply if you're selling for someone who has died or under a power of attorney. An executor needs the grant of probate before contracts can be exchanged, and GOV.UK says probate is usually granted within 12 weeks of applying. See selling an inherited house, and take legal advice if the owner has lost mental capacity.

Protect yourself from fraud

• Check bank details by phone. Criminals send fake emails claiming account details have changed. Call your solicitor on a number you already know before sending or accepting any change. GOV.UK's advice is that if you're in any doubt, don't transfer the money.
• Sign up for Property Alert. HM Land Registry's free service emails you if someone applies to change the register for your home, for up to 10 properties. Empty, rented and mortgage-free homes are at higher risk of fraud.

Changes on the way

In June 2026 the government published a roadmap for reforming home buying and selling. It plans to require sales packs, including searches and a property condition report, before a home is listed, and later to make agreed sales binding earlier through conditional contracts. These need new laws, which the government says it will bring in when parliamentary time allows, so the process above still applies today.